This isn't your typical shoujo, regardless of what other commentators would have you believe. There are going to be differing tastes when it comes to mixing genre's, in fact it's rarely done well. In the case of Akatsuki no Yona (AnY), it's succeeded in almost every way.

Let's start with the characters since they have been accused of being shoujo cut-outs. I couldn't disagree more, the characters are unique and very strong in their personalities. I consider bad character writing to be where a personality breaks its mold or tries to be everything to everyone. You see this in alot of shounen manga/anime, but in AnY, the characters are all very much different and fill their roles very well. What makes the characters especially good here, is that they all have solid and personal motivations that are believable. Almost every character wants something different even if they're paths align. The characters are also written almost morally ambiguous; in other words, there are no black and white, good and evil characters. This is far closer to reality. What one person considers evil, is often justified through subtle writing, whether you agree with their justifications or not. This is obvious with Su-won and Yona, I personally hate Su-Won but the dynamic between those two characters is refreshing. Su-won isn't a caricature written as a place holder of the evil bad guy. He has is own beliefs and ideals, even if they clash with the main character. That builds enormous tension and plays off the strength of the differing personalities. It creates so many dynamics between Hak, Su-Won and Yona and gives the story even more depth.

I would say, without a doubt, the character writing is this manga's strongest point and what makes it interesting. Even if this had a weak story / plot, the characters could pull it through. Fortunately, the story and setting are very interesting even if its been done before. If you were to criticize anything, it would have to be story. It's simplistic and relatively straight forward on one hand, and yet it's propped up by the interesting political schemes and world building the author juggles. It never really jumps in too deep, but it also doesn't resort to deus-ex-machina machinations either. This keeps it light and allows the reader to grasp the deep subtleties that are around every corner.

The reason this works is down to the pacing. So far the story hasn't stagnated at all, but moved briskly through the story while retaining alot of the mystery and intrigue that hooked you at volume 1. The best writers know how to keep you engaged through mystery by giving you what you want at the right moments, and AnY is no exception. What i dislike, probably the most, out of stories is seeing the end of a goalpost and being hand-fed clues to how it all ends. I have no idea how the author will resolve the most interesting bits of this story, and that is a good thing. The only draw back to this approach is that when building it up so much the resolution can often times not meet your expectations. So far though it has blown away my expectations and so i have high hopes for all the story weaving that this tapestry offers.

I don't want to pretend that AnY is a masterpiece of literature, but for me the most important element of manga is enjoyment. I've seen and read hundreds of anime/manga and its rare to come across something like AnY that keeps alot of the good elements of manga genre's and twists / plays with them in different and exciting ways. Not everyone is going to like a certain manga, and some people will absolutely not like the large combination of genre's that this offers, but when it's done right I think it transcends even manga that are masterpieces in their respective genres. Shoujo is definitely not my style, but it's appeal is reaches far beyond that. This is simply a good, fun read. And I hope you give it a chance because it has something for everyone.

This one is so worth the read. Some may be put off initially by the spoiled naive princess from the beginning and her silly crush on her cousin Soo-Won (I was), but really, that's just the start of it. She won't be your weak, helpless damsel in distress heroine for long, which is probably why the anime showed a good size glimpse of the stronger future Yona with all her kick-butt traveling companions.

Which brings me to why I REALLY love this manga. It's fantasy elements, fights, and political intrigue are great, yes, but it's really the characters and character development that make this manga. There's not one static, boring character. Yona herself, who I thought would be annoying, is genuinely determined to be stronger after the tragedy of what her bishie cousin did to her father and tried to do to her and her close friend bodyguard Hak. Instead of being flung about and pulled along by the story as a victim she is the one that purposely progresses it once she finds her determination and purpose. Hak, who easily could have been just a suave clone of every hero bodyguard in every other manga out there, is hilarious, and while he does present a romantic interest, that isn't the only reason he's there. He's a beast of a fighter, a sarcastic troll when he wants to be, and has every bit as much complexity as any other character, as well as his own motivations for fighting and mixed feelings toward his former friend Soo-Won.

And actually, Soo-won himself is not as simple to figure out as one would initially think. Yes, he wants to be king and that's why he killed Yona's kind father but his motivations and plans for the kingdom or even Yona herself are even now not so entirely simple or clear. I won't spoil too much regarding him, but he's definitely an interesting enigma even to his own generals who don't all know what he did.

And then there's Yoon and the dragons. Again, I won't spoil too much for those who haven't read it yet, but they are all such fun, varied personalities (and some with heart-wrenching backstories) that when you put them together one by one and have them play off each other (and especially Hak) it's fun beyond measure. I also like that although it is a bit of a reverse harem, they're not all falling over each other to flirt with Yona. Their feelings toward her are all different and while some attempt to flirt (jokingly or otherwise) it's not the main focus of the story or only intended for fanservice to the girls. Again, the characters are what really make this good.

And the anime? One of my favorite anime adaptations. The animation and music is good, the plot stays true and all the hilarity is intact. Even after reading all the manga up to date, it's still one that I look forward to watching every week. And next week, the chubby obligatory cute animal squirrel makes an appearance. Horray!

Yeah.... I totally love it. Me. A twenty year old who has sworn off shoujo or so i thought. This thing made me feel like I am 12 years old again, afraid to talk to boys and crushes are the moat important thing in the world and then slowly realizing that duh- it is so totally not.

Btw- if it counts i watched the anime and then followed the manga. So addicting. It's like the illegitimate daughter of Saiunkoku Monogatari and Fuushigi Yuugi and i am a real sucker for reverse harems that have that guardian theme, world travel, quest type, backpacking, character developing tropes. I mean come on- Akatsuki no Yona brought me straight back to my roots. It made me remember why i even liked anime and manga at the first place.

Oh and it has that ability too! They are able to make you feel for characters even though they've only been around for a couple of pages. It also gets real too - not everyone here gets a happy hippy yehey ending. If they die, they really die. When they bleed they really bleed. There's no quick fix. And btw, Yona is tots better than Miaka. Hahahaha. Love Miaka but lord, that girl is dumb. Yona gets beaten up for reals and she actually trains, she's not one of those Mary Sue types that just randomly picks a weapon and then realizes that she is a natural.

Damn it. Just pick it up. I was really happy that i did.

Oh yeah! And the characters! Omygawd. I love them all. I cant pick a clear bae. But like one of the peope who have commented here said i too want to see Hak at least walk away just one. That would be interesting! I like Soo Won too! Dude has conviction- he's not tye stereotypical bad guy and he is pretty clever- true a little backstabbing but i want him in on my team. Oh and yoon and the dragons dont get me started, sister! Oh god. I like hiw different each of their clans are! Background stoties though ftw. I just dont want it to get to the point where we are all going to go sappy knowing yona is bot going to end up with one of them because i predict that by the end of this-- they might be dead. I hope that's just me.

    Akatsuki no Yona has been among my favourites for quite a few years now (pretty much from when I started reading it, back when the scans were only up to volume three or four). Leaving aside my general fondness for Kusanagi-sensei's works and other personal preferences, this manga has a lot going for it. A few of the comments have left me a bit puzzled, but that happens (as always, please read things for what they are). The basis of the story at first appears to be that of a revenge story, but that is far from the reality. This does not mean that the leads aren't furious (it'd be really strange if they weren't), but rather, there are more important things to them. This alone, even without the other elements of the story, makes for a complicated tale, and the aspect of complexity is heightened by multi-sided conflicts, betrayal, politics, and other elements.
    This includes the characters, all of whom have thorough motivations and are determined to see them through. There is tremendous character growth in all of the important characters, but especially in Yona, who moves from a sheltered princess to a heart-broken refugee to an actual leader. Moreover, the antagonist is something of an anti-villain, in that he does "evil" to a beneficial end as far as the country is concerned; very few of the characters are depicted to be completely "good" or "evil." Nor are any of the characters simple: all of the characters are complex and convincing as people, varying in strength, personality, attitude, and stage in life. Also, Yona's group is far from a reverse harem (and the effect of the "dragon blood" must be considered); Akatsuki no Yona is decidedly not that kind of story.
    The plot is extremely well-written, with very few holes, a suitable pace, and a reasonable course of events and action. The character interactions range from chilling (in the case of enemies) to heartwarming (the best are the interactions of the leads), while the humour is wonderful. The artwork is exceptionally detailed (the first page of chapter sixty-seven, for one), with beautifully executed action, and it is very readable and easy to follow. The characters are very expressive: Kusanagi-sensei will sometimes simplify the face or entire figure of a character for expressiveness and at other times will draw expressions displaying complex emotions which have wonderful subtlety. The work contains many details which make rereading more pleasurable than typical as well (and on multiple levels). Additionally, Kusanagi-sensei's humour fits perfectly and prevents the work from becoming too heavy.
    The total is not something I would ascribe to any particular demographic (and the most similar story I know of is seinen), and I would recommend Akatsuki no Yona to anyone who enjoys stories involving character growth and politics as an element of plot. I'd also recommend Akatsuki no Yona to those who like Chang Ge Xing, +C: Sword and Cornett, Shut Hell, Elhanburg no Tenshi, Koukyuu Days, or Ookami to Koushinryou (or vice versa).

... Last updated on April 29th, 2019, 9:41am

Honestly, I've kind of outgrown the whole Shoujo manga thing. But it's really AMAZING to see a female character who starts off naive and sheltered come into her own in a more natural way. Like usually there's a lot of melodrama or she turns into a damsel in distress, but Yona is absolutely amazing! She's humble, sensible, vulnerable. Yet, she's also strong and resilient. All the characters show growth and the narrative is complex without being contrived. It's quite a well done manga in my opinion. Would HIGHLY recommend

Dramatic, funny, action packed, heartbreaking, etc etc etc. This manga packs feels like crazy, and it also has one of my favorite female heroes in manga. She starts out pretty soft, yeah, but of course she does given that she's a coddled princess. She catches up super fast, though, and does so impressively. She recognizes her faults physically and intellectually, and works hard to fix them ("I need to become strong" ... "I don't want to continue being an idiot") and DOES fix them.

Reverse harems can be difficult in that even strong women might become more damsel than hero, but Yona isn't really falling into that category. She is continually becoming closer to being an equal member in their team, which is made up of (basically) dragons and people-more-awesome-than-dragons. Is she perfect? No. But she isn't sold as perfect and she doesn't insist that she is. She just wants to be (and works hard to be) a good person and do good in her country, a desire that's even allowing her to heal from her initial grief.

(Also: This manga isn't harmed by having some extremely appealing males. Yona's got an A+ harem. Shin-ah and Ao are the cutest pair in the whole of manga. Barring some future work of perfection, I will standby that statement for forever.)

I am in love with this series. I'll try to hold myself back from going on an endless rant, but here are a few of my favorite elements of this series.

1. Beautiful character growth and relationships. Kusanagi does a wonderful job with making her characters believable, distinctive and charming in their own right. I find all most all the characters in this series to be interesting and enjoyable, even the antagonists. But the way these characters interact with one another really drives it home. The relationships build over time and you gradually come to learn more about each character's history and personality in a very natural way. The same goes for the romance. Disclaimer: I am a fan of slow romances because you can generally see their feelings grow and change over time and this is indeed a slow romance. Kusanagi does this very well. Hak and Yona have this bond that just cannot broken; you can tell that they have the utmost trust in one another and would do anything for the other. It's so freakin' cute. And watching them go from childhood friends to kindred spirits to <spoiler> Yona kissing him </spoiler> makes you feel like you really know them.

2. Plot. AnY is technically a shoujo, but it is just as much a fantasy, historical, comedy and action. It's got all the elements of shoujo that I like (heart-pounding moments, bishies, etc.) without making them contrived or predictable. It's a nice blend of everything. Thanks to this, the plot doesn't fall to the wayside to make room for more shoujo-esque moments. In my opinion, the plot reads more like an epic instead of "there's one bad guy we need to defeat and we'll face his minions on the way", which is more common in the fantasy/romance genre. Instead, Yona's goal changes several times over the course of the story, each time growing more ambitious in scale. At the same time, there is the overarching prophecy plot line concerning King Hiryuu and the Dragons that readers still no little about (hopefully that'll change soon). As a quick aside, this manga has some great laugh out loud moments. Sometimes the comedy is subtle, but man, it has made me laugh quite a few times!

3. Art. I love Kusanagi's art style. I read her previous work NG Life and liked it there, but it's only gotten better with Akatsuki no Yona. Her attention to costume detail is exceptional and the art is always very clean and lovely.

4. Lack of annoying shoujo tropes or stereotypes. This point kind of speaks for itself, but what I mean is characters aren't made to do dumb or unreasonable things just for the sake of drama/romance/angst or whatever. No ex-girlfriends/boyfriends or silly love triangles to stir the pot, Yona does not remain a weak lead, Hak is not a possesive or jerk-ish love interest (quite the opposite), and despite the harem tag I'd say there are only 2 people that are actually in love with the female MC, which is refreshing.

Anyways, I could go on and on but the main point of my review is this: I would highly recommend this series to just about anyone because I really think that it's got aspects that could appeal to the vast majority of people. It's a great series with a solid plot and art and I'm so happy that it's finally being released in English.

The lead of this series starts out horribly weak, but wouldn't you be weak too if you had been a spoiled princess? She wasn't in the loop of all the politics being waged out of her sight, almost like she was in a happy, safe bubble, placed there by her father the king. her only complaint was that she didn't like her hair color (and oh yeah, she couldn't marry the one guy she actually liked)

After seeing her father killed she flees for her life. I still consider her at this point pretty weak but she's in a state of shock. Everything she knew, everything that was conformable was pitched out and tossed upside down.

Once she starts to get her feet under herself she really starts to blossom into a strong girl, worth of one day having the country on her shoulders, assuming she can make it that far Highly recommended.

This is TRULY one of the best manga out there. I fell in love with the characters, plot, fantasy elements, and most importantly, THE ARTWORK! I am always thrilled and get goosebumps every time they stare intensely and it's almost as if they're alive! It's been years since the last time I read manga again (back then I really like it when I was still in junior high) but during high school and until now (I'm currently in college) I haven't touch the mangas. I remember Akatsuki no Yona as one of the best, and the most memorable manga, but I've left out a lot of chapters since last time so I read it again from the very first chapter. I'd say that this manga can stir up your feelings like a roller coaster. One time you'd laugh yo ass off because it's hilarious and at one time you can cry a lot because it's very heart-breaking. I admire Yona and every character in it. I suggest you to read this if you like a bunch of handsome men and a cute girl, but none of them are shallow. They are deep, and lovable. This ain't giving you the stigma of reverse harem.

Akatsuki no Yona is one of the best manga you'd ever read,,I got hooked in it from the very first chapters,,the story is Awesome,,the art is amazing,,the developement is very good,,the pace is also natural and decent not too fast and not so slow,,but what really amazes me is main character's (Yona) developement,,,from a weak spoiled princess to strong willed powerful girl,,and also her childhood friend (Hak) is so so cool and strong,,,,and the dragons are very amazing,,,so what really distinguish this manga is that every character has its own personality and look (unlike those mangas where u dont even know who the person is!!) and the main character developement (also unlike these mangas where the main character is always crying and waiting to be saved)
so trust me on this,,READ THIS MANGA AND YOU WILL JUST LOVE IT!!!!!